Members of the European Parliament responded positively to the European Commission’s proposals for greater transparency in labeling the origin of honey mixtures, which was initiated by Slovenia and supported by many beekeeping associations in Europe, including the Serbian Federation od Beekeeping Organization`s. The original idea to start such an initiative came from the president of the Beekeeping Association of Slovenia, Boštjan Noč, a man for whom there is no such thing as „impossible“, and he pushed this idea to the end, as well as many previous ones. Thank you Boštjan, for everything you have done for beekeeping in Europe and the world, this latest venture of yours will change the beekeeping image of the honey market in Europe, and Serbia will soon adopt the new regulations.
Consumers will now be able to make clear decisions about the purchase of agricultural products and food products such as honey, fruit juices, jams and jellies, European MPs in Strasbourg are convinced.
Officially, Slovenia was the initiator of the revision of the honey directive in the part related to the labeling of the origin of honey mixtures. It is about the introduction of the obligation to provide complete information to consumers, regarding the countries of origin of honey, and essentially also the price of honey.
Members of the European Parliament (EP) agreed yesterday that the country where the honey was produced must be indicated on the label. On the label of fruit juices, jams, jellies, jams and chestnut puree, the country of origin of the fruit used must be indicated on the front label.
If honey or fruit come from several countries, MEPs want the countries of origin to be listed on the label in descending order according to the share they represent in the final product.
Also, the MPs request that a high-quality traceability system be established in order to limit fraudulent workers in the production of the above-mentioned food.
The formation of a reference laboratory for honey is expected, which would make it easier to detect fake honey.
Parliament supported the starting points for legislative changes with 522 votes in favor, 13 against and 65 abstentions. The EU Council will now give its opinion on the proposal of the European Commission, after which negotiations between the two institutions will begin.
It is now definitely certain that the proposal is supported at all levels, and that we will soon have amended regulations on honey.
Beekeepers are probably not even aware of what all this means for the future development of European beekeeping, but already in a year or two after the entry into force of the new regulations, we will not be able to recognize it, we will have better quality honey on the market, an organized market and more market space for real honey from real beekeepers. which will ultimately affect the creation of real honey prices.
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